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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » National Animal Disease Center » Food Safety and Enteric Pathogens Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #172270
Title: PREVALENCE OF CAMPYLOBACTER JEJUNI (CJ) AND CAMPYLOBACTER COLI (CC) IN MARKET WEIGHT TURKEYS PRE- AND POST-TRANSPORT

Author
item WESLEY, IRENE
item MURAOKA, WAYNE
item BOUCHARD, CHRISTOPHER
item SCUPHAM, ALEXANDRA
item TRAMPEL, DARRELL - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/18/2004
Publication Date: 11/22/2004
Citation: Wesley, I.V., Muraoka, W.T., Bouchard, C.T., Scupham, A.J., Trampel, D. 2004. Prevalence of Campylobacter jejuni (CJ) and Campylobacter coli (CC) in market weight turkeys pre- and post-transport [abstract]. U.S.-Japan Cooperative Program in Natural Resources Panel of Animal and Avian Health Meeting. 39:5.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: GOAL: To compare the prevalence of Campylobacter spp., especially C. jejuni (CJ) and C. coli (CC) in turkeys pre-(Time 1) and post-(Time 2) transport on six farms (January - March 2004). METHODS: Cloacal swabs (n = 120) were collected on-farm (Time 1) within 24 hours of transport. At the abattoir (Time 2), cloacal swabs (n = 120) of live birds from the same flock were taken prior to stunning and placed in blood-free enrichment broth (BFEB). Crops (n = 50) and ceca (n = 50) were harvested immediately after evisceration, 10% suspensions prepared in buffered peptone water, enriched in BFEB (24 hours, 42 C), and subcultured to Campy Cefex agar. Presumptive Campylobacter colonies (3/plate) were streaked to blood agar and identified as CJ or CC by a multiplex PCR. RESULTS: Overall, the prevalence of Campylobacter spp. on-farm (Time 1, 70-100%) and after transport and holding (Time 2; 86% to 100%) were comparable. When individual flocks were evaluated, Time 2 prevalence was higher on only one of the six premises (0.02 p < 0.05). Likewise, when data from all farms were combined, there were no significant differences in the prevalence of CJ and CC between Time 1 and Time 2. Statistically significant differences did emerge when farms were analyzed individually. Campylobacter spp. was recovered more frequently from the ceca (67.4%) than from the crop (26.3%) when data from all farms was combined. By X**2 analysis, differences in the prevalence of CJ and CC between individual farms again emerged for ceca and crop. CONCLUSION: Shifts in Campylobacter spp. prevalence associated with "transport stress" emerge when individual flocks are evaluated. This may reflect either variations in on-farm management practices, seasonality, or lack of sensitive analytical methods to critically evaluate the true impact of transport stress on the dynamics of Campylobacter.